What is meaning of flashing red lights on a police car

[NY]

Normally red flashing lights mean stop in all circumstances, no exceptions -
eg level crossing or fire station lights.

But when a police car has flashing lights on its roof and there are both
blue and red flashing lights, what is the significance of the red lights? If
the car is stopped in the road ahead, especially in the motorway lane that
you're in, does it mean "stop behind the police car" or does it mean (like
the blue lights) "you may pass but take great care of a hazard"? And what if
the police car is stopped off the road in a layby or on a hard shoulder?

Yesterday I encountered a series of police cars parked on the verges of a
country lane. From the direction that I was going, there were only blue
lights. The policemen paid me very little attention as I approached, having
slowed down in case they needed me to stop.

But as I passed one of the cars, I saw in my rear view mirror that it was
displaying red lights as well as blue lights for traffic coming from that
direction.

So in what circumstances do the police use the red lights to supplement the
normal blue lights?

[Mark Goodge]

On Tue, 26 May 2015 12:17:44 +0100, NY put finger to keyboard and typed:

>Yesterday I encountered a series of police cars parked on the verges of a
>country lane. From the direction that I was going, there were only blue
>lights. The policemen paid me very little attention as I approached, having
>slowed down in case they needed me to stop.
>
>But as I passed one of the cars, I saw in my rear view mirror that it was
>displaying red lights as well as blue lights for traffic coming from that
>direction.
>
>So in what circumstances do the police use the red lights to supplement the
>normal blue lights?

They have no legal significance. They are used primarily as hazard lights,
particularly when a police car is at a standstill in a traffic lane in the
manner you describe here - it miminises the prospect of the police car
being rear-ended while stationary.

They also provide a visual indication that the police car in front of you
isn't moving. A motorist's normal reaction to seeing blue flashing lights
immediately in front of him is to stop and let the police car pass. The red
flashing lights signify "I have stopped, so you need to pass me".

Mark
--
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[NY]

"Mark Goodge" <use...@listmail.good-stuff.co.uk> wrote in message
news:jvj9madenh08vvf60...@news.markshouse.net...

> They have no legal significance. They are used primarily as hazard lights,
> particularly when a police car is at a standstill in a traffic lane in the
> manner you describe here - it miminises the prospect of the police car
> being rear-ended while stationary.
>
> They also provide a visual indication that the police car in front of you
> isn't moving. A motorist's normal reaction to seeing blue flashing lights
> immediately in front of him is to stop and let the police car pass. The
> red
> flashing lights signify "I have stopped, so you need to pass me".

Ah, so you'll never see a police car using its red flashing lights while
it's moving?

[Mark Goodge]

On Tue, 26 May 2015 21:11:54 +0100, NY put finger to keyboard and typed:

Not normally, no.

[Nightjar .me.uk>]

On 26/05/2015 21:03, Mark Goodge wrote:
> On Tue, 26 May 2015 12:17:44 +0100, NY put finger to keyboard and typed:
>
>> Yesterday I encountered a series of police cars parked on the verges of a
>> country lane. From the direction that I was going, there were only blue
>> lights. The policemen paid me very little attention as I approached, having
>> slowed down in case they needed me to stop.
>>
>> But as I passed one of the cars, I saw in my rear view mirror that it was
>> displaying red lights as well as blue lights for traffic coming from that
>> direction.
>>
>> So in what circumstances do the police use the red lights to supplement the
>> normal blue lights?
>
> They have no legal significance.

I can't even find that they are legal to fit. Schedule 16 to The Road
Vehicles Lighting Regulations 1989 specifies that warning beacons may be
blue, amber, green or yellow and I can't find an amendment that adds red
as a colour.

> They are used primarily as hazard lights,
> particularly when a police car is at a standstill in a traffic lane in the
> manner you describe here - it miminises the prospect of the police car
> being rear-ended while stationary.
>
> They also provide a visual indication that the police car in front of you
> isn't moving. A motorist's normal reaction to seeing blue flashing lights
> immediately in front of him is to stop and let the police car pass. The red
> flashing lights signify "I have stopped, so you need to pass me".

Like the OP, I have always viewed flashing red lights as meaning stop
and find their use in this way confusing.


--
Colin Bignell

[NY]

"Nightjar.me.uk>" <"cpb"@ <insert my surname here> wrote in message
news:armdnbP9cvm_GPjI...@giganews.com...

>> They also provide a visual indication that the police car in front of you
>> isn't moving. A motorist's normal reaction to seeing blue flashing lights
>> immediately in front of him is to stop and let the police car pass. The
>> red
>> flashing lights signify "I have stopped, so you need to pass me".
>
> Like the OP, I have always viewed flashing red lights as meaning stop and
> find their use in this way confusing.

Yes. The other situation (which I forgot about earlier) where you encounter
flashing red lights meaning "you must stop" when driving is on overhead
gantries on a motorway where they mean "do not go any further in this lane".

I suppose their meaning when used on police cars is different because they
are always (I presume) used in conjunction with blue lights - if you see red
flashing lights and no other light it means stop, whereas if you see red
flashing lights with blue flashing lights alongside them it means "caution -
pass with care".